Week.... Is it week 3 in Eager already?

Hi Everyone!

So, I've got to make this short. Love you all! Have a great week! Talk to you next week!
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Just kidding! This is going to be a bit long today :) So this week was interesting in that we weren't able to get out and visit a lot of people untilThursday (according to the doctor, my companion and I had the flu) but on Thursday we were back to our normal schedule! We spent most of that time trying to catch up with our visits, so most of it was just visiting people that we were supposed to visit earlier in the week. On Friday, one of the members took us to breakfast at a place called Java Blues and it was there that I was introduced to the best syrup that I've ever had!! It was like a buttermilk maple syrup or something but that, paired with buttermilk pancakes, was AMAZING!! (Yes, I will be constantly writing about the food here). Most of the rest ofFriday was spent planning and trying to get a hold of one of our referrals, AJ, who is turning out to be a very very hard person to find and who won't answer our calls. Well, I guess we're just going to have to keep being persistent until he tells us he isn't interested or finally meets with us. Of course, if he isn't interested now, they usually have you wait a few months before trying to contact them again, you know, to give them a little space to let the Spirit work on them a bit more.

Friday evening we watched Ephraim's Rescue with the Johnson family.

They are such a great family! The husband is trying to quit Chew and he has made it through a week without relapsing, so hopefully he'll be able to make it past the next 190 days. Technically, if he was smoking, the program that we had him on would enable him to quit and stay clean after a week, but chewing tobacco is different. Anyway we watched Ephraim's Rescue with them and you could feel a change in their house. When we got there, he was a bit grumpy, but after the movie he was pleasant and talking about the Gospel aspects of the film and it was almost a complete 180 from his earlier behavior.

On Saturday, because we are low on miles for our car, we walked around one of our ward areas trying to meet the people that the bishop had marked on the Ward Directory. We met a few really nice people and we felt impressed to head over to AJs place again (persistence!) and it was there that we ran into a guy named Grady. He was visiting his sister and he was just outside having his  "smoke" when we walked up. We talked to him a bit and found out that he believed in God and that his ex-wife was LDS. We asked him what he knew about her beliefs and when he said "not much" we told him that we believe God and Christ and gave him a Book of Mormon to read. It was kind of cool. I don't know if he'll actually read it and contact us, but the seed has been planted. Saturday evening we had a really good dinner at a less-active/part-member home and it was really good! I am now going to be cooking apples with brown sugar for a snack whenever I'm hungry. The investigator's name is Deirdra and it was nice to get to talk to her and her family in a more comfortable setting because whenever we've visited, she's been distracted by her kids and this time, they weren't a distraction, so we were able to gauge that she is still interested in hearing more. That, and she's been going to CHURCH!!

We watched Ephraim's Rescue again on Saturday night with the Wycoffs. They've been through a really hard time, and brother Wycoff has been trying to quit chewing as well. They're always so kind to us and I really hope that we can get them back to church because it would help them so much!

Sunday was great...

I spoke in Sacrament Meeting on Service. It's funny because I was really really nervous until I got up to the pulpit and then I got really calm and I gave my talk. I guess it wasn't MY talk because I didn't say anything that I'd prepared, but I gave a talk on Service and how we are God's hand to show his love to his children and I shared the story about the Christus statue that Pres. Uchtdorf shared in one of his talks. It was an enlightening experience. I KNOW that I didn't prepare what I gave, and I guess that was the Lord using me as his hands, or mouthpiece, to say what that congregation needed to hear.

Sunday evening we taught a new convert the first lesson again. He had so many questions about what he didn't quite understand, but I knew exactly what he was asking and I knew exactly how to answer his questions. I know that when we are obedient and when we are constantly praying, God uses us to help others. He won't always answer our prayers immediately, but he can and does answer our prayers through others. Thank you all for being the answers to my prayers, even though I'll bet none of you had any idea that you were answering a prayer. I love you all so much and I'm so grateful that we'll be together forever and I KNOW that this Gospel is true and that God has restored his priesthood power through Joseph Smith. And I KNOW that families can be together forever through the everlasting covenants that we make in the temple. I know it and I know that God knows that I know it, and I can't deny it.

Love,
Steph

PS Mom, next week I'm sending you a recipe for a pecan pie that will actually SET!

I almost forgot! Here are some pics from our hike up Flat Top this week and driving around with the Hermanas.

Week 5

Dear all,

Thanks for all the letters and emails! They really brighten up my week!
So, for this week.
On Monday we re-committed one of our less-actives to the quit smoking program and he's been doing really well with it so far.  On Tuesday we had a lesson set up with another one of our less-actives and it went really well. We taught the first lesson, but focused on re-establishing his connection with God through prayer. It's amazing what can happen and how much more the Spirit is able to work within someone if they pray and have that good connection with God. We had one of his neighbors with us who is also becoming re-activated (almost all of the work up here is re-activation) and he was so excited at the end of the lesson, he asked if he could come teach with us again. Can I get a "woot woot"? That was super exciting. 
On the way to the lesson, we were driving down Central and we almost missed our turn. So I wasn't able to brake completely when I went into the turn. Now, on a normal road, that wouldn't have been a problem. However, this was a dirt road. So we ended up in a ditch next to the road, but then suddenly we were up and out of the ditch and back on the road heading to our appointment without a single scratch. I can only say that God protects his missionaries. When we drove past that spot in the day-time, we saw boulders, a pole and a fence that would have been impossible to miss, so I have a renewed testimony that God looks out for all of us. Oh, mom and dad: I'm fine. And no, there weren't any scratches or dents on the car haha.

Next order of business: the smoke. Everyone up here has wood-burning stoves and so every night smells like a massive bonfire and reminds me of home when we would sit around the fire pit and roast marshmallows and bacon. This really reminds me of home. Everyone is so kind and even though it's a small town, there is so much work that we can do. Like I said, most of it is reactivation, but we're fortifying the home-front, which is so important, especially in keeping the new converts active and bringing everyone closer to Christ. The only downer to my week was that both my companion and I have come down with something. We don't know whether it's the beginnings of the flu or strep, but we've been kicking it as quickly as we can so that, hopefully, we won't have to be out of commission for much longer.

My companion and I will be able to go to the Gilbert temple open house a couple times this month and so I'm super excited! Also, we live so close to the temple, we need to go as often as we possibly can! I didn't realize how much I would miss it until I couldn't go whenever I wanted to.

I love you all so much! Keeping sending me mail/letters/emails! I love them! And, who knows? Maybe it'll make these 17 months pass by faster (yep I hit my 1 month mark on Saturday!!!) I'm praying for all of you (I haven't forgotten ANYONE) and I hope you're all great!

Love,
Sister Stephanie Lee

I attached interesting pics of the week. The double-yolked egg, Eager Arizona, and my companion and I.

Week 4 (week 2 in Eagar)

Hey Everyone!

This week has been really great! (if my spelling is off, I blame this keyboard I'm currently typing on because the keys aren't always responsive). I've been made the designated diver for our car, so I'm getting to know the area really quickly. The work up in Eager is pretty slow because you just can't rush these people. They like to move at their own pace, but are really kind and very friendly towards the missionaries. The main issue that we deal with up here are inactive members that are having issues with the Word of Wisdom. We have several people going through a 15-step program to help them quit smoking, chewing and drinking coffee and they're doing pretty well for the most part. My companion and I are over several wards up here, so we're constantly going and visiting and I feel like I've been introduced to almost the entire area within the past few days.

My companion is great! She's super enthusiastic and has a lot of energy all of the time, which is good because she's been keeping me going when I'm tired. We drove into the valley on Friday to hear Elder Holland speak. Unfortunately, he cancelled several days before, but we were able to hear our area seventy (Elder Wright) speak and it was truly an amazing experience and I was able to see my whole district from the MTC as well as Sister Dwiggins!

 I know that this church is true and that we're all given the amazing opportunity to share that knowledge with everyone that we come in contact with. The first thing that I really learned out here is that the Spirit is the teacher. As 18-21 year-old Elders and Sisters, we don't have a ton of experience in the Gospel, but people can't deny what we know to be true. They can't deny our testimony or our faith. "We talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins." (2 Ne 25:26)

Despite what some may think, we DO believe in Christ. We are constantly striving to follow his example and to be more like him. We need to remember that. The scriptures are constantly telling us to "Remember". Satan uses forgetfulness as a means of destruction. Never forget our Savior. Never forget his sacrifice. And NEVER forget your testimony. It's amazing what inspiration can come to your mind or the power that your testimony holds when you bear it often. That's been one of the biggest reminders for me out here. I love and miss you all, but don't worry about me. I'm on the Lord's errand :)

Love,

Sister Stephanie Lee

Arizona

So, first things first. It's COLD!!! Not in Scottsdale, the weather was pretty temperate, but my area that I've been assigned to is up in the mountains in a little town called Egaer. Because it's up in the mountains (elevation and all) it's cold. So, if you have the opportunity, I would really love to see a package that has my flat boots, blue flannel sheets, a hoodie, and fuzzy socks. I'll probably buy some more pairs of shoes, just so I can cycle through them so they all don't wear out so quickly and some leggings/tights.

My new companion is AWESOME! Her name is Sister Andrus and she's been in this area around 4 of the 6 months that she's been out. We share a really nice trailer house with two Hermanas. Hermana Carrio and Sanchez. Hermana Sanchez is from Spain and is several weeks from going home and Hermana Carrio has just hit the half-way point. They were really sweet and put up a sign my room above my bed that said welcome. I haven't taken a picture of it yet, but I promise to get a picture to you ASAP. I was finally able to find my computer cord ( in my shoulder bag of all places) so I'm going to try to attach my pics, but it's loading them really slowly.

Mom, It was so good to hear from you and Jen again. I really miss you all! Dad, I'm so sorry that our call got dropped at the airport. I'm glad that I at least got to tell you that I loved you. When the call actually dropped, I burst into tears. There was a really nice woman in the airport that walked up to me and my companion and gave me her phone to call, but I had the distinct impression to let one of the Elders use the phone because he didn't have a calling card. He was able to talk to his family and I know that he felt much better.

The plane ride was nice, I had an aisle seat and I slept most of the way down. We had to get up at 3am to get everything ready to be checked out by the new STLs and get to the bus by 4:30am. We were stuck out in the cold for a bit while a guy loaded the luggage onto the bus (there was only one guy doing it for 2 different buses), but we were on the bus and on our way to the airport at 5am. When we got to the airport, they didn't have my boarding pass with the rest of the group, so they sent me to a different desk. The guy tried looking me up in the computer, but he said that I wasn't listed on the flight AT ALL! So, he did a bunch of computer stuff for the next 5 minutes and got me on the flight sitting with my group. So, that was the most dramatic thing that happened. Except for the fact that they confiscated my toothpaste out of my carry-on, but I felt like that was small in comparison.

When we got to Phoenix, my mission president and his wife were waiting for us outside the gate with the APs and they took us to the Mesa Temple where we had a snack in the parking lot and then toured the Visitor's Center and took some pictures that are probably on the blog by now.

Afterwards, we drove to the mission home which is next door to a church building, so we dropped our bags off in one of the rooms, did some training, got assigned new companions, then they sent us out to do street contacting until dinner (with more experienced missionaries). That was an enlightening experience, but, in retrospect, I really enjoyed it and learned a lot. The sisters spent the night at Sister McConkie's apartment (her husband's uncle is elder McConkie) and then the next day I got certified to drive here and then I was set up with Sister Andrus. We then drove the 5 hours to get to our house and by that time I was a bit car-sick, so she took me to the house and we did planning and she showed me around and went over the rules. Today is p-day only because it's transfer week, so our normal p-day is on Monday. We'll be coming to the library at 10:30am because that's when it opens and it's not super busy. Just so you're all aware.

Apparently, our mission is going to be doing Facebook stuff and we'll get mini ipads in February, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that my comopanion and I will be assigned to Facebook chat or something. I feel much more comfortable typing than talking to people, but I'll be ok with whatever the Lord has me do.

Elder Holland is coming to speak to our mission on Saturday, so that's why we're going to Scottsdale this weekend. I feel super blessed! I got to hear from Elder and Sister Bednar on Christmas and now Elder Holland is coming to my area!! WOOHOO!!!

Like I mentioned before, the computer is loading the pictures really slowly, so I don't know how many will go through, but the first few would be of Sister Lopez and myself at the MTC on our first Sunday walking up to the Temple. The computer is going to kick me off in just a minute, but I just wanted to let you know that I love you all and to keep smiling and to study the Bible AND the Book of Mormon. Together. In tandem. AT THE SAME TIME! haha talk to you next week! (don't forget the package of warm things!)

Love,

Sister Stephanie Lee

Stephanie's last night in the MTC!

Last night Sister Lee got to meet with Elder Anderuda Lee before they both flew out.

Elder Lee was able to give her a blessing and they took this picture.

For your information:

Stephanie left for Arizona after a pretty eventful morning.

The airline didn't have her on the flight,

there was a mix up with the phone card so Mom talked to her for a little bit and Dad was only able to talk to her for 1.5 minutes,

she has a tear in her digestive tract.

Apparently it is the 2nd most common thing at the MTC and is caused by stress.

Thankfully, she made it on the plane with her companion,

she is now in Arizona,

and she is on medication.

She could use everyone's prayers.

Look who found each other on Christmas!!!

Elder and Sister Lee found each other on Christmas!!!
Yay!!!